Work

The Developmental Gene Hypothesis for Punctuated Equilibrium: Combined Roles of Developmental Regulatory Genes and Transposable Elements

Year: 2020

Type: review

Abstract: Theories of the genetics underlying punctuated equilibrium (PE) have been vague to date. Here the developmental gene hypothesis is proposed, which states that: 1) developmental regulatory (DevReg) genes are responsible for the orchestration of metazoan morphogenesis and their extreme conservation and mutation intolerance generates the equilibrium or stasis present throughout much of the fossil record and 2) the accumulation of regulatory elements and recombination within these same genes-often derived from transposable elements-drives punctuated bursts of morphological divergence and speciation across metazoa. This two-part hypothesis helps to explain the features that characterize PE, providing a theoretical genetic basis for the once-controversial theory. Also see the video abstract here https://youtu.be/C-fu-ks5yDs.

Source: BioEssays

DOI: 10.1002/bies.201900173

Authors: Emily L. Casanova, Miriam K. Konkel

Institutions: University of South Carolina, Clemson University

Language: English

Topic: Evolution and Genetic Dynamics

Subfield: Genetics

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Institutes of Health, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

Award: Gross morphological correlates to the minicolumnopathy of autism